Aircraft

Airbus to cease deliveries of A380 in two years

The Airbus A380 is the world's largest airliner, and Emirates flies more of them than any other airline
The Airbus A380 is the world's largest airliner, and Emirates flies more of them than any other airline

After making its first flight in 2005 and entering commercial service in 2007, the Airbus A380 double-decker jumbo jet proceeded to become the flagship aircraft of the Emirates airline. This Thursday, however, it was announced that Emirates has reduced its latest order. As a result, Airbus will cease deliveries of the A380 in 2021.

Emirates had originally ordered another 162 of the planes, but the airline recently opted to drop that number to 123.

"As a result of this decision we have no substantial A380 backlog and hence no basis to sustain production, despite all our sales efforts with other airlines in recent years," said Airbus Chief Executive Officer Tom Enders. "This leads to the end of A380 deliveries in 2021. The consequences of this decision are largely embedded in our 2018 full year results."

A further 14 A380s will be delivered to Emirates over the next two years. The airline has also ordered 40 of Airbus' A330-900 and 30 of the A350-900 wide-body aircraft.

"Passengers all over the world love to fly on this great aircraft. Hence today's announcement is painful for us and the A380 communities worldwide," said Enders. "But, keep in mind that A380s will still roam the skies for many years to come and Airbus will of course continue to fully support the A380 operators."

The Airbus A380 is currently the world's largest airliner, seating 525 passengers in a three-class configuration or 853 in all all-economy setup.

Source: Airbus

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3 comments
Babaghan
In a last minute deal, Emirates has agreed to buy up to 36 more planes from Airbus. They have committed to buy 20 planes, with an option for 16 more. This should keep the production line in operation for at least another 10 years.
SimonClarke
Such a shame to see this iconic aircraft come towards the end of it's production run. While there might be a few more aircraft ordered over the next year or so Airbus is basically saying that they are wanting to close this aircraft down to make room for others.
It was a privilege for me to be part of the Wing Design team in Bristol in the early noughties, it was an amazing experience.
TomLeeM
While I think it is a way cool airplane, I had a feeling it was a niche market one and that not many would want such a huge airplane.